Family ZYGAENIDAE

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Introduction

The Australian Zygaenidae are brightly coloured, resembling Hymenoptera or Ctenuchinae (Arctiidae), or shining metalic green or blue. Earlier authors (Jordan 1908–11; Alberti 1954) placed them in several subfamilies or tribes: Alberti (1954) placing them in the tribes Callizygaenini (Hestiochora Meyrick and Thyrassia Butler) and Procridini (Pollanisus Walker and Turneriprocris Byrk (as Neoprocris Jordan)) of the Procridinae. Tarmann (1994) showed that all Australian species belong to the tribe Artonini in the subfamliy Procridinae. The Callizygaenini as used by Alberti (1954) and currently treated as a subfamily are confined to South and South-East Asia and are absent from Australia. The genus Burlacena Walker, previously included in the Procridinae (Nielsen & Common 1991), is more closely related to the Lacturidae, where it is placed here, or perhaps the Phaudinae (Naumann & Tarmann, unpublished).

The world fauna was listed in Lepidopterorum Catalogus by Byrk (1936) {}and the Indoaustralian fauna in Seitz's Macrolepidoptera of the World by Jordon (1908-11). The Australian Zygaenidae were revised by Meyrick (1886c) and Turner (1926c). The Australian fauna was revised comprehensively by Tarmann (2005).

Forty-three species are described from Australian, and approximately eight undescribed species are known. The family is widely distributed throughout Australia, except for the arid centre and almost all Australian species are endemic. A few species have close relatives in New Guinea, Fiji and South-East Asia. Some biological information is provided by McFarland (1970, 1979), Common (1990) and Tarmann (1994){} and Tarmann (2005). All Australian Zygaenidae are resistant to cyanide.

General References

Alberti, B. 1954. Über die stammesgeschichtliche Gliederung der Zygaenidae nebst Revision einiger Gruppen. Mitteilungen aus dem Zoologischen Museum in Berlin 30: 117-481, pls1-61

Common, I.F.B. 1990. Moths of Australia. Carlton : Melbourne University Press vi+535 pp., 32 pls.

Jordan, K. 1911. Zygaenidae, Burnets. Pp. 5-56, pls 1-8 in Seitz, A. (ed.). [1908-1911]. The Macrolepidoptera of the World. 10. Bombyces and Sphinges of the Indo-Australian Region. 2 vols. Stuttgart : Alfred Kernen Verlag 909 pp., 100 pls.

McFarland, N. 1970. Moths eggs!. Australian Natural History 16(1968-70): 348-349

McFarland, N. 1979. Annotated list of larval foodplant records for 280 species of Australian moths. Journal of Lepidoptera Research Supplement 3: i-ii, 1-72

Meyrick, E. 1886c. Notes on the synonymy of Australian Lepidoptera described by Mr Rosenstock. Annals of Natural History 17: 528-530

Nielsen, E.S. & Common, I.F.B. 1991. Lepidoptera (Moths and Butterflies). pp. 817-915, pls 7, 8 in CSIRO (ed.). The Insects of Australia. 2 vols. Carlton : Melbourne University Press xiii + vi + 1075 pp., 8 pls.

Tarmann, G.M. 2005. Zygaenid Moths of Australia. A revision of the Australian Zygaenidae (Procridinae: Artonini). Collingwood : CSIRO Publishing 248 pp.

Turner, A.J. 1926c. Revision of Australian Lepidoptera: Drepanidae, Limacodidae, Zygaenidae. Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales 51: 411-445

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